‘Naya Qanoon’ and the 19th Amendment

by Reeza Hameed 

- on 03/28/2015 

The draft 19th Amendment reminds me of the story ‘Naya Qanoon’ (New Constitution) written by the late Saadat Manto, regarded by many as the finest writer of short stories in Urdu and as the greatest South Asian writer of the 20th century. Set in pre-independence Lahore of the 1930s the main protagonist of the story is a tongawalla called Mangu.

‘Naya Qanoon’ and the 19th Amendment by Thavam Ratna